High quality social environment buffers infants’ cognitive development from poor maternal mental health: Evidence from a study in Bhutan

Juvrud, Joshua; Haas, Sara; Lindskog, Marcus; Astor, Kim; Namgyel, Sangay C; Wangmo, Tshering; Wangchuk,; Dorjee, Sithar; Tshering, Kuenzang; Gredebäck, Gustaf

doi:10.1111/desc.13203

“…information on whether this includes siblings, grandparents, aunts and uncles, etc.) would aid in the interpretation of these results, this finding has to some extent been supported in the literature, where family and social support has been shown to be protective of child and infant cognition (Juvrud et al, 2022;Sonuga-Barke & Mistry, 2000;Taylor et al, 2015). Also, for example, large population-based longitudinal studies in Australia found that a small family was a significant predictor of internalising behaviours in preschool children (Bayer et al, 2008(Bayer et al, , 2012Symeonides et al, 2021), which is in keeping with our results.…”

Section: Cohort 1 (Leap)supporting

confidence: 91%

Mapping the link between socio-economic factors, autistic traits and mental health across different settings

Del Bianco,

Lockwood Estrin,

Tillmann

et al. 2023

Autism

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Autistic individuals experience higher rates of externalising and internalising symptoms that may vary with environmental factors. However, there is limited research on variation across settings that may highlight common factors with globally generalisable effects. Data were taken from two cohorts: a multinational European sample ( n = 764; 453 autistic; 311 non-autistic; 6–30 years), and a South African sample ( n = 100 non-autistic; 3–11 years). An exploratory factor analysis aggregated clinical (Verbal Comprehension and Perceptual Index), adaptive traits (Vineland Adaptive Behaviour Scale) and socio-economic variables (parental employment and education, home and family characteristics) in each cohort separately. With regression, we investigated the effect of these factors and autistic traits on internalising and externalising scores (measured with the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire). Cohorts showed similar four-factor structures (Person Characteristics, Family System, Parental and Material Resources). The ‘Family System’ factor captured family size and maternal factors and was associated with lower internalising and externalising symptoms in both cohorts. In the European cohort, high autistic traits reduced this effect; the opposite was found in the South Africa cohort. Our exploratory findings from two separate analyses represent consistent evidence that Family System is associated with internalising and externalising symptoms, with a context-specific impact in persons with high autism traits. Lay Abstract Autistic individuals are more likely than non-autistic individuals to experience a mental health condition in their lifetime, and this includes externalising and internalising symptoms. We know very little about how different environments and family conditions impact these symptoms for autistic individuals. Improving our understanding of these relationships is important so that we can identify individuals who may be in greater need of support. In this article, we seek to improve our understanding of how environmental and family conditions impact externalising and internalising symptoms in autistic and non-autistic people. To do this, we conducted analyses with two cohorts in very different settings – in Europe and South Africa – to ensure our findings are globally representative. We used advanced statistical methods to establish environmental and family conditions that were similar to each other, and which could be combined into specific ‘factors’. We found that four similar ‘factors’ could be identified in the two cohorts. These were distinguished by personal characteristics and environmental conditions of individuals, and were named Person Characteristics, Family System, Parental and Material Resources. Interestingly, just ‘Family System’ was associated with internalising and externalising symptoms, and this was the same in both cohorts. We also found that having high traits of autism impacted this relationship between Family System and mental health conditions with opposite directions in the two settings. These results show that characteristics in the Family System are associated with internalising and externalising symptoms, and autistic persons are particularly impacted, reinforcing the notion that family stressors are important to consider when implementing policy and practice related to improving the mental health of autistic people.

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“…This may be that larger families provide additional support to a child and protect against these symptoms. Whilst more granular data (e.g., information on whether this includes siblings, grandparents, aunts and uncles etc) would aid in the interpretation of these results, this finding has to some extent been supported in the literature, where family and social support has been shown to be protective of child and infant cognition (Juvrud et al, 2021;Sonuga-Barke & Mistry, 2000;Taylor et al, 2015). Also, for example, large population-based longitudinal studies in Australia found that a small family was a significant predictor of internalising behaviours in preschool children (Bayer et al, 2008(Bayer et al, , 2012Symeonides et al, 2021), which is in keeping with our results.…”

Section: Cohort 1 (Leap)mentioning

confidence: 77%

Mapping the link between socio-economic factors, autistic traits and mental health across different settings

Del Bianco,

Estrin,

Tillman

et al. 2023

Preprint

0

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Autistic individuals experience higher rates of externalising and internalising symptoms that may vary with environmental factors. However, there is limited research on variation across settings that may highlight common factors with globally generalisable effects. Data was taken from two cohorts: a multinational European sample (n= 764; 453 Autistic; 311 non-Autistic; 6-30 years), and a South African sample (n=100 non-Autistic; 3-11 years). An exploratory factor analysis aggregated clinical (Verbal Comprehension and Perceptual Index), adaptive traits (Vineland Adaptive Behaviour Scale) and socio-economic variables (parental employment and education, home and family characteristics) in each cohort separately. With regression, we investigated the effect of these factors and autistic traits on internalising and externalising scores (measured with the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire).Cohorts showed similar 4-factor structures (Person Characteristics, Family System, Parental and Material Resources). The “Family System” factor captured family size and maternal factors and was associated with lower internalising and externalising symptoms in both cohorts. In the European cohort, high autistic traits reduced this effect; the opposite was found in the South Africa cohort.Our exploratory findings from two separate analyses represent consistent evidence that Family System is associated with internalising and externalising symptoms, with a context-specific impact in persons with high autism traits.

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“…In cases where such conditions exist, they can affect the developmental outcomes of the foetus in many direct ways, such as interrupting the bonding process between mother and baby, breastfeeding, and changes in the cognitive ability of the baby (Smith et al 2022;Juvrud et al 2021). Notwithstanding these factors, pregnant women and single parents from low-income households in the Caribbean may suffer from higher rates of MMH disorders.…”

Section: Maternal Mental Health (Mmh) Costsmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Impact of Climate Change on Vulnerable Populations

2023

1

0

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She is also an Honorary Consultant Researcher with the Ni3 Centre at the University of Huddersfield, UK, an institution that addresses domestic violence. She is developing a body of work on the social impacts of climate change for vulnerable populations. This seeks to highlight, but is not confined to, the links between gender inequalities and climate change. Dr. Joseph has undertaken work in the areas of domestic violence, HIV/AIDS, women fisher folk, environmental sustainability, disasters, and climate change. Furthermore, she has completed studies of tropical Storm Erika-Dominica; Hurricane Maria-Dominica; and undertaken a Family Case Study and discussed the impact of female-headed households post-Hurricane Maia-Dominica. She received the "Jeremy Collymore Award for Research in Humanitarian Response and Disaster Risk Management" for the year 2019.Dr. Roshnie A. Doon is currently an independent researcher in the field of Labour Economics. She holds a PhD in Economic Development Policy, an MSc in Economics, and a BSc in Economics from the University of the West Indies St. Augustine, Trinidad. She pursued a master class in International Business from the Henley School of Business at the University of Reading, U.K., and is currently an affiliate of the Global Labor Organization (GLO), Essen, Germany, and an executive committee member of the Caribbean Academy of Sciences (CAS), Trinidad and Tobago Chapter. Her academic interests are focused on applied and empirical economics, with work in the areas of labour, gender, and education economics. She has published research on a wide range of areas, which include higher education instruction, economic implications of COVID-19, returns to schooling, educational mismatch, STEM education, wage inequality, gender wage gaps, and economic development policy. ix ForewordIt is a privilege to be able to continue to contribute to the body of literature addressing vulnerability and marginality in the climate change field. As an interdisciplinary scholar in both Environmental studies and Africana and Latin American studies, my work sits at the nexus of environmental psychology, environmental justice, and natural resource management. Over the past decade and a half, the bulk of my work has been with marginalized and vulnerable communities in the Caribbean and the US as they experience climate change impacts and other environmental injustices such as food access and the impacts of oil and gas drilling. My scholarship examines the ways in which fishers in the Caribbean are disproportionately impacted by climate change and highlights the everyday strategies that are used to adapt to impacts that they experience.This text, The Impact of Climate Change on Vulnerable Populations: Social Responses to a Changing Environment by Debra D. Joseph and Roshnie A. Doon, continues to center climate change and its impact on vulnerable and marginalized communities. Climate change is an existential threat to the world; if not addressed, it has the potential to cause irreparable damage to ecosystems and...

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High quality social environment buffers infants’ cognitive development from poor maternal mental health: Evidence from a study in Bhutan

Cited by 5 publications

References 78 publications

Mapping the link between socio-economic factors, autistic traits and mental health across different settings

Mapping the link between socio-economic factors, autistic traits and mental health across different settings

Mapping the link between socio-economic factors, autistic traits and mental health across different settings

The Impact of Climate Change on Vulnerable Populations

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